OceanGate CEO Bragged About Using Expired Carbon Fiber to Build Doomed Sub

jmcs@discuss.tchncs.de to Technology@beehaw.org – 286 points –
OceanGate CEO Bragged About Using Expired Carbon Fiber to Build Doomed Sub
futurism.com

New evidence strongly suggests that OceanGate's submersible, which imploded and killed all passengers on its way to the Titanic wreck, was unfit for the journey. The CEO, Stockton Rush, bought discounted carbon fiber past its shelf life from Boeing, which experts say is a terrible choice for a deep-sea vessel. This likely played a role in the submersible's tragic demise.

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I can’t believe people smart enough to acquire the wealth for that excursion

You do not need to be smart to acquire wealth.

Of the people in the sub, I am confident that 4/5 of them were born into wealth, and I can't really find any information on the other one.

  • The Dawoods (father and son) were only wealthy because their father/grandfather was wealthy.

  • Stockton Rush was also born into wealth, his family made their money from oil and shipping.

  • Can't find a lot of information about Hamish Harding, but he was flying aeroplanes at 13 and went to a prestigious private school called The King's School, so it's safe to say he was also born into considerable wealth.

Initially, I thought Stockton Rush couldn't be a total moron because he had a degree in aerospace engineering from Princeton, but having followed the college admissions scandal, we know what those degrees are actually worth. Crap.

The college admissions scandal was for people who didn't have enough money to donate for an entrance ticket. If you're rich rich you just donate a bunch of money and your kid gets in, no scandal necessary

The 5th guy worked for the company that owned the salvage rights to the Titanic, was a professional diver, and was considered an expert on the Titanic, and he'd been on a lot of dives before to recover artifacts and map the wreck.

He more than anyone should have known this was the crappiest sub he'd ever been on, but he was seemingly obsessed. I can imagine he was invited and didn't pay for a slot.